Employers Say They Do Not Receive Health Plan Quality Information
While a "vast majority" of employers say "quality of care" is "very important" when selecting a health plan for their workers, more then two-thirds do not "routinely" receive reports from their insurers on the care that employees receive, the Washington Post reports. A survey conducted by Watson Wyatt, a Washington-based employee benefits consulting firm, questioned 360 employers across the country and found that many employers "are content" to purchase health plans in an "as-is condition." According to Kate Sullivan, director of health care policy for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, employers "trust" that "if [a] plan is in operation, if it's been certified by the state insurance department" then it must be a "quality plan." She added that smaller businesses "just don't have the time and the resources and the wherewithal to collect health-plan data." However, some insurers do provide employers with "quality of care surveys" to distribute to workers. Susan Pisano, a vice president at the American Association of Health Plans, said, "There is quite a lot of information that is available about the performance of America's health plans. We certainly know that not every employer has focused on the quality data that's available." Employers surveyed also cited cost pressures as a barrier to quality. Forty percent of employers say increasing costs have "hurt" the quality of care. However, the Post reports that the survey did not ask respondents to define their "quality of care concerns." The survey also found that:
- 71% of employers have increased premiums because of higher costs;
- 86% of employers are at least "moderately satisfied" with their HMO plan;
- 55% intend to improve online services; and
- 76% percent intend to continue selecting health plans rather than offering employees the option and money to choose their own plan (Brubaker, Washington Post, 3/8).
